Roncalli ItalianFrom the names of places like Ronco or Ronchi, quite common in northern Italy, derived from
ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It was the surname of Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881-1963), the pope John XXIII.
Ronchi ItalianFrom Italian places named Ronchi, derived from
ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It is most common in northern and central Italy.
Roosevelt DutchMeans
"rose field" from Dutch
roos "rose" and
veld "field". This was the surname of American presidents Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) and Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945).
Rosário PortugueseMeans
"rosary" in Portuguese. This name was often given to people born on the day of the festival of Our Lady of the Rosary.
Rose 1 English, French, German, JewishMeans
"rose" from Middle English, Old French and Middle High German
rose, all from Latin
rosa. All denote a person of a rosy complexion or a person who lived in an area abundant with roses. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental, from Yiddish
רויז (roiz).
Rossi ItalianDerived from a nickname for a red-haired person, from Italian
rosso, Latin
russus meaning "red". This is the most common surname in Italy.
Rossini ItalianDiminutive form of
Rossi. A famous bearer was the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868).
Roth German, JewishFrom Middle High German
rot meaning
"red". It was originally a nickname for a person with red hair.
Rothenberg German, JewishFrom Middle High German
rot meaning "red" and
berg meaning "mountain". As a Jewish name it may be ornamental.
Rothschild JewishFrom Middle High German
rot "red" and
schilt "shield", or Yiddish
רויט (roit) and
שילד (shild). The famous Rothschild family of bankers took their name from a house with a red shield on it.
Rounds EnglishPatronymic derived from Middle English
rond meaning
"round, plump", ultimately from Latin
rotundus.
Rousseau FrenchDiminutive of
Roux. A famous bearer was the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) whose ideas influenced the French Revolution.
Roux FrenchDerived from Old French
ros meaning
"red", from Latin
russus, a nickname for a red-haired person.
Royce EnglishOriginally derived from the medieval given name
Royse, a variant of
Rose.
Roydon EnglishOriginally derived from a place name meaning
"rye hill", from Old English
ryge "rye" and
dun "hill".
Royer FrenchFrom French
roue meaning
"wheel", ultimately from Latin
rota, an occupational name for a wheelwright.
Royle EnglishOriginally derived from a place name meaning
"rye hill" from Old English
ryge "rye" and
hyll "hill".
Royston EnglishOriginally taken from an Old English place name meaning "Royse's town". The given name
Royse was a medieval variant of
Rose.
Rubio SpanishNickname for a person with red hair, from Latin
rubeus "red".
Russell EnglishFrom a Norman French nickname that meant
"little red one", perhaps originally describing a person with red hair.
Rutherford ScottishFrom the name of places in southern Scotland and northern England, derived from Old English
hriðer meaning "cattle, ox" and
ford meaning "ford, river crossing".
Ruzzier ItalianFrom a dialectal variant of
Ruggiero. It is typical of northeastern Italy, the area around Trieste.
Ryba u & m Polish, CzechMeans
"fish" in Polish and Czech, an occupational name for a fisher.
Rybár m SlovakMeans
"fisher" in Slovak, from
ryba meaning "fish".
Ryder EnglishOccupational name for a mounted warrior, from Old English
ridere meaning
"rider".
Rye EnglishTopographic name. It could be a misdivision of the Middle English phrases
atter ye meaning
"at the island" or
atter eye meaning
"at the river". In some cases it merely indicated a person who lived where rye was grown or worked with rye (from Old English
ryge).
Sachs GermanOriginally indicated a person from Saxony (German
Sachsen). The region was named for the Germanic tribe of the Saxons, ultimately derived from the Germanic word *
sahsą meaning "knife".
Şahin TurkishMeans
"hawk" in Turkish (of Persian origin), probably used to refer to someone who was a hawk tamer.
Salcedo SpanishDerived from Latin
salix meaning
"willow tree". The name was originally given to one who lived near a willow tree.
Salinas SpanishOccupational name for a salt worker or someone who lived bear a salt works, from Spanish
salina "salt works, salt mine", ultimately from Latin
sal "salt".
Sandberg Swedish, Norwegian, JewishFrom Swedish and Norwegian
sand (Old Norse
sandr) meaning "sand" and
berg meaning "mountain" (or in the case of the Jewish surname, from the Yiddish or German cognates).
Sandford EnglishIndicated a person from Sandford, England, which means simply "sand ford".
Sands EnglishFrom Old English, indicated the original nearer lived on sandy ground.
Santana Spanish, PortugueseFrom any of the numerous places named after Saint
Anna. A famous bearer is the Mexican-American musician Carlos Santana (1947-).
Santoro ItalianMeans
"all saint's day" in Italian, a nickname for one born on that day.
Santos Portuguese, SpanishMeans
"saint" in Portuguese and Spanish, ultimately from Latin
sanctus. This was a nickname for a pious person.
Sarto ItalianOccupational name meaning
"tailor" in Italian, from Latin
sartor, from
sarcire meaning "to mend".
Sartre FrenchFrench cognate of
Sarto. A famous bearer was the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980).
Sauter GermanOccupational name for a cobbler, from Latin
sutor "sewer, cobbler".
Savage EnglishEnglish nickname meaning
"wild, uncouth", derived from Old French
salvage or
sauvage meaning "untamed", ultimately from Latin
silvaticus meaning "wild, from the woods".
Sawyer EnglishOccupational name meaning
"sawer of wood, woodcutter" in Middle English, ultimately from Old English
sagu meaning "saw". Mark Twain used it for the main character in his novel
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).
Scheinberg JewishOrnamental name meaning
"beautiful mountain" from German
schön "beautiful, good, nice" and
berg "mountain".
Schenk German, DutchFrom Middle High German, Middle Dutch
schenke meaning
"wine server" (from Old High German
scenken "to pour out").
Scherer GermanOccupational name for a cutter of cloth or a sheep-shearer, from Old High German
skeran "to cut".
Schirmer GermanMeans
"fencer, fencing master", from Old High German
skirmen meaning "to defend".
Schlosser GermanOccupational name for a locksmith, derived from Old High German
sloz meaning "lock".
Schmidt GermanOccupational name derived from Middle High German
smit "smith, metalworker", a cognate of
Smith.
Schnur German, JewishFrom Old High German
snuor meaning
"rope, cord", an occupational name for a maker of rope.
Schofield EnglishFrom various northern English place names, which were derived from Old Norse
skáli "hut" and Old English
feld "field".
School DutchFrom Dutch
school, ultimately from Latin
schola meaning
"school", indicating a person who worked at or lived near a school.
Schouten DutchOccupational name derived from Middle Dutch
schout meaning
"sheriff, bailiff".
Schreier German, JewishOccupational name for a town crier, from Old High German
scrian meaning "to shout, to yell".
Schrijnemakers DutchOccupational name for a cabinet maker, from Dutch
schrijn "box, container" and
maker "maker".
Schröder 1 Low GermanOccupational name for a tailor, from Middle Low German
schroden meaning "to cut".
Schuchardt GermanFrom Middle High German
schuochwürte meaning
"shoemaker, cobbler".
Schuhmacher GermanFrom the Middle High German occupational name
schuochmacher meaning
"shoemaker".
Schuler GermanMeans
"scholar, student" in German, ultimately from Latin
schola meaning "school".
Schulz GermanOccupational name derived from Middle High German
schultheiße meaning
"mayor, judge".
Schuster GermanMeans
"shoemaker, cobbler", from Middle High German
schuoch "shoe" and
suter, from Latin
sutor "sewer, cobbler".
Schwarz German, JewishMeans
"black" in German, from Old High German
swarz. It originally described a person with black hair or a dark complexion.
Schwarzenegger GermanFrom a place name, derived from Old High German
swarz meaning "black" and
ekka meaning "edge, corner". A famous bearer of this name is actor and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger (1947-).
Scott English, ScottishOriginally given to a person from Scotland or a person who spoke Scottish Gaelic.
Scriven EnglishOccupational name meaning
"writer, clerk, scribe" in Old French, derived from Latin
scriba.
Selby EnglishFrom the name of a village that meant "willow farm" in Old English.
Sempers EnglishFrom the name of various towns named
Saint Pierre in Normandy, all of which commemorate Saint
Peter.
Sergeant English, FrenchOccupational name derived from Old French
sergent meaning
"servant", ultimately from Latin
servire "to serve".
Ševčík m Czech, SlovakOccupational name derived from Czech and Slovak
švec meaning
"shoemaker, cobbler".
Seward 2 EnglishMeans
"swineherd" from Old English
su "sow, female pig" and
hierde "herdsman, guardian".
Shain JewishMeans
"beautiful, handsome" in Yiddish, from German
schön.
Sharma Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Assamese, Gujarati, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, NepaliMeans
"joy, shelter, comfort" in Sanskrit.
Sharp EnglishNickname for a keen person, from Old English
scearp "sharp".
Shaw 2 ScottishFrom a given name or byname that was derived from Gaelic
sitheach meaning
"wolf" (Old Irish
sídach).
Sheinfeld JewishOrnamental name derived from German
schön "beautiful, good, nice" and
feld "field".
Shepherd EnglishOccupational name meaning
"shepherd, sheep herder", from Old English
sceaphyrde.
Sherburn EnglishDenoted a person hailing from any of the various places called Sherborne or Sherburn in England, derived from Old English
scir "bright" and
burna "spring, fountain, stream".
Sherman 1 EnglishMeans
"shear man", referring to someone who used shears in his line of work, such as a sheep-shearer.
Shirazi PersianOriginally denoted someone who came from the city of Shiraz, located in southern Iran. The city's name is possibly of Elamite origin.
Shirley EnglishFrom an English place name, derived from Old English
scir "bright" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Sidney EnglishOriginally derived from various place names in England meaning "wide island", from Old English
sid "wide" and
eg "island". Another theory holds that it comes from the name of a town in Normandy called "Saint
Denis", though evidence for this is lacking.
Siegel 2 GermanDerived from the diminutive of Old German given names beginning with the element
sigu meaning "victory".
Sienkiewicz PolishPatronymic from the given name
Sienko, an old diminutive of
Szymon. This was the surname of the Polish writer Henryk Sienkiewicz (1846-1916).
Sierra SpanishOriginally indicated a dweller on a hill range or ridge, from Spanish
sierra "mountain range", derived from Latin
serra "saw".
Silva Portuguese, SpanishFrom Spanish or Portuguese
silva meaning
"forest". This is the most common surname in Portugal and Brazil.
Silver EnglishFrom a nickname for a person with grey hair, from Old English
seolfor "silver".